Search This Blog

57 Reasons Why I Like Living in Brunei

I found this interesting list entitled "57 Reasons Why I Like Living in Brunei" on the internet written by who I gather to be an American by the name of Steve Ryan. It was written 10 years ago in 1997 and some references are slightly out of date. It gave a different perspective to Brunei Darussalam:-

1. Everybody drives on the wrong side of the road but head-on collisions are very rare.

2. If you wake up in a grouchy mood, it passes quickly when you see all the middle-aged businessmen marching around wearing black fezzes, bright green/purple/yellow/blue primary-colored pajamas, and gold-embroidered skirts.

3. You get an automatic wakeup call every morning from the muezzin at the mosque, even if you forget to set your alarm.

4. Peaceful. Only the military has any guns, and they never shoot them.

5. It's really a change to live in a country where the one guy worth more than $30 billion is a decent, polite, college-educated human being who is genuinely concerned about the welfare of others and not an evil, petty-minded, greedy monopolistic geek peddling lousy software.

26. You can safely see creatures that would give Jacques Cousteau nightmares, just on a visit to the Fish Market.

27. Water taxis have rowdy drivers that enjoy splashing and rocking other boats with their wakes.

28. Fun to learn to shift gears and adjust the radio with your left hand.

29. OK to either A) drive like a maniac, or B) poke along at 15 MPH looking at all the weird stuff by the side of the road. Nobody gets mad; everybody does one or the other.

30. Geckos scuttling all over your house instead of cockroaches. They make funnier noises, too, like: "Chuck - CHUCK!"

31. Cobras and pythons generally stay in the jungle and not in town. But no problem to go find some to play with if you really want.

32. Three words: It's Not Houston. Three more: Or New York.

33. People like to set things on fire over here. It's ok to burn things in your front yard in huge flaming pyres, and nobody gets excited even when the roadsides catch fire, which they frequently do. You can also quickly spot roadside satay snack vendors by spotting the dense smoke and flames billowing from their grills.

34. Cops are polite even when they catch you doing something you're not supposed to be doing.

35. Monitor lizards walk funny, all bowlegged with their stomachs held up as high off the ground as possible.

36. Technical mistakes during local TV evening news are hilarious.

37. Get to see lots of funny-talking British expatriates and ridiculous-looking tourists wearing black socks and shorts.

49. Fun to drive by the Sultan's Palace and watch the policemen in their little guardhouses trying not to look utterly bored out of their minds.

50. Get to surprise everyone by quickly agreeing with their criticisms of the USA's interventionist foreign policies, and then enjoy listening to them complain we don't do enough to help other nations.

51. Get to watch scratchy Indian movies on TV where the hero and heroine wail nasally and dance around each other grimacing in an amusing and incomprehensible manner.

52. All Muslim, Christian, Chinese, and other folks' religious, traditional, national, and what-not holidays are recognized as official days off for the government and the banks; since these employ over 50% of the people of Brunei, everybody takes these days off. This works out to every day being an official holiday from Thanksgiving to the end of February, and about half the working days in the other months. With so many cultures, it's always somebody's holiday.

53. They have real pirates over here, which adds a definite sense of adventure to any yachting excursion.

54. If your change comes out to somewhat more than fifty cents, they'll often round it off in your favor up to the next dollar, except in the big Japanese department store.

55. Jollibee has MUCH better burgers than McDonald's, and they have killer slow-burn chili sauce.

57. Interesting, colorful money with little plastic windows in it and cool pictures of Sultan, airport, oil rigs, plants, etc., that seems to spend much more readily and less painfully than real greenbacks.

Some "reasons" are really funny.. I agree wholeheartedly with #47 this is very much similar to the female UBD graduation "gandi" (cap).. hehe no offense, I've been wearing them twice.. and believe me, it's very difficult to put them on..

"Brunei is fast becoming a mini-replica of what the western world wants us to be. Is this good or bad?"

Though I may not agree with some of the items on the list, I find some things that are amusing as well and also realise that we dont have jolt cola (last time i checked - note to self: need to go back home to Brunei soon). However, your comment does make me think FlyBoy.

Personally, I think that we're easily influenced especially the younger generations (apart from the fact that we tend to follow the accents of those whom we talk to.. "bruneians speak m'sian malay when speaking with m'sians). Show them something on MTV and they'll most likely follow. I've been living abroad for quite a long while now and when i went back home for the first time in years, I got quite a culture shock (a "reverse" culture shock actually). Brunei now has goth, punk and etc. wow! I'd expect this in a foreign country but I was hoping to return to my Malay roots. Well, not completely Malay roots but at least the so-called Bruneian culture (sad to say this but I don't think I know what it is anymore). Nowadays, I see the Malay girls in scantily-clad outfits and some are even rude. Is this what we want tourists to think? Considering the fact that the people are the ones who represent the country. I still remember reading a Brunei guidebook that mentioned having to dress conservatively when visiting and not to wear revealing clothes as it is considered offensive to the locals. What happened to the modest, polite and decent people of yesteryears? Not many of them around I notice or maybe I should've visited other districts as well to see what the situation is like instead of just stereotyping Bruneians based on my observation of the Brunei-Muara District. I still have hope but has development ruined the Bruneian identity? As we strive towards advancing our country in the international arena, did we not see this coming?

Things aren't as they were before obviously what with the development. Kudos to the government for having done loads of improvement. The standard of living is high as well. Many extravagant houses on the rise. However, Mr BR sir, it would be good if u could define the Bruneian culture as it is at present. What is the one thing that differentiates us from every other country in the world? What can we promote to others about our country?

I was discussing this notion with a fellow Bruneian resident but who's not as lucky to be granted the Yellow status, a few weeks back.

His observations of the Bruneians he met, was that it seems that they all whine/complain at one time or another without actually doing something about it.

He elaborated to the notion that Bruneians tend to wait until things improve *magically on their own*. I felt guilty of those charges and then realised that when conditions do improve (not magically lah), we criticise those improvements when the work of other people did not match our expectations.

I'm sure not everyone behaves this way all the time. But what I'm trying to point out is that we talk, discuss and then formulated a battle plan. Who made the first move to implement those plans?

And who wants to lead with all the almost-perfectionist expectations of others?

I'm moving to Brunei soon and while doing pre-migration research work, I came across this post. I found it very funny and helpful, thank you very much! Oh just one thing, Jollibee is from the Philippines :)

I remember some years back the Sultan hired then Miss America for some personal work with a very attractive salary. She came back to US and sued him for more money. The case was settled pouring more money. I wonder it was settled on who’s favor???

It's quite entertaining to know that someone shared the same view as I had the first time I went to Brunei 10 years ago too. However, I have been back and am currently working here again for almost 3 years now and things are definitely changed and it's not getting any better. I kinda miss this place after a very long absence but then again now I don't think I'd miss this place once I leave, which is going to be soon. Sorry guys, it's just my opinion.

Love the info and thanks!I am an American English teacher, have been trying ot figure out a way to get a teahcing job in Brunei for a few years now! Absoutely my dream location! Would really appreciate any info from you or others who may know a loophole.. thanks so much! Elise

One of the scariest thing that young Bruneians face is the interview at the Public Service Commission or in Brunei speak known as Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Awam or better known as SPA. Get through the SPA interview, fortunes in the civil service awaits you. Or at least that is what's on the mind of everyone who applies for a job in the government service.

It's been quite sometime since I last interviewed anyone at SPA. I used to do it when I was the Deputy Director about 10 years ago. The one thing I noticed is that most people who were being interviewed mostly seemed ill prepared for it - some were very prepared for the wrong thing. There is this perception that if you remember the full name of the Minister or the list of Permanent Secretaries and Deputy Permanent Secretaries or the Director of the department or the Ministry that you are trying to get into together with their full names and titles, you are going to get the job. Wrong!

DESPITE first making its appearance in the Sultanate during the 1940s, Kuih Mor continues to be a household favourite today as a tea time snack or festive treat particularly during Hari Raya Aidil Fitri.

Siti Norhafizah Hj Bagol, a final year student at Universiti Brunei Darussalam who researched on Kuih Mor as part of her Brunei Traditional Industry module, said the three-ingredient sweet treat may have existed in Brunei as early as the 1940s when padi was known to have been grown to make different food items.

Over time, the cookie has also become a popular door-gift choice often handed out at Malay weddings or gatherings, said Siti Norhafizah.

Made with flour, oil and granulated sugar which have been ground into a powder, the bite-sized biscuits have a crumbly texture and are coated with powdered sugar.

The age-old technique of making Kuih Mor by hand has however changed over the course of time, with many now opt…